Council establishes CCMC committee

CEBU, Philippines —  After all the waiting and criticisms, the Cebu City Council finally created an ad hoc committee that will head the planning, design and construction of the long-overdue Cebu City Medical Center.

The old CCMC structure was damaged by a major earthquake back in 2013.

Vice Mayor Michael Rama, who was the mayor during that time, had pushed for the construction of a world-class hospital. The construction started in 2015 but hit a snag when Tomas Osmeña became mayor in 2016.

In his privilege speech, Rama said what was envisioned as a 10-storey world class building got snipped to seven stories during Osmeña’s time, noting that only a little work was done at the end of his successor’s administration.

“By the end of my term (as mayor), we were able to complete much of what you see now but sadly only much has been spent, not much has been done to finish our people’s hospital.  Sobra na kadaghan ang saad and petsa na humanon kuno pero puro lang pakyas Where is the promptness there?” said Rama.

After vice mayor Edgardo Labella beat Osmeña last year, there were hopes for the facility’s construction  to inch closer to completion. But there were delays until COVID-19 struck the city.

Mayor Labella said he was eyeing to finish the first three levels of the building, one of which was a parking lot, which Rama did not agree with.

“And now manteneran na lang ta’g three storeys, as temporary services, parking ang 1 storey. Did we make people wait six years for only three storey?” added Rama.

Rama told The FREEMAN that the CCMC should be done the way it was envisioned to be and not just a temporary facility to cater to COVID-19 patients.

After checking the building again last month, Rama talked with Labella and said the mayor listened to him that they must deliver what is adequate to the people.

“We have to deliver the 10 stories no more no less,” said Rama.

As chairman of the council’s committee on health and proponent of the CCMC project, Rama is calling on everyone in the council to put their acts together. This paved the way for the approval of his resolution forming an ad hoc committee dedicated for CCMC.

“I enjoin you all to help in the prompt delivery, proper construction of an adequate CCMC for the people,” Rama told the council.

Rama also revealed that business tycoon Manny V. Pangilinan will help the CCMC on the management side, saying that once the CCMC operates, it shall be run by a private management group.

The ad hoc committee will be headed by Rama along with Councilors Nestor Archival, Philip Zafra and Raymond Garcia with help of the members of the council’s committee on health.

Members of the ad hoc committee come from the two political parties, a composition similar to the one behind the transformation of the BIG Foot Studios into what is now the New Normal for Oasis Adaptation and a Home (NOAH) Complex for asymptomatic patients of COVID-19.  LPM (FREEMAN)